Soldiers cross a flooded road in Poonaryn, northern Sri Lanka, an area the military recaptured during their military offensive against the Tamil Tiger rebels, November 28, 2008. (Stringer/Reuters)From Yahoo News/AP:
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Government forces captured the Tamil Tigers' de facto capital in northern Sri Lanka on Friday, dealing a devastating blow to the rebels' quarter-century fight for an independent state, the president said.
But in a sign the rebels retained their ability to strike back, a suspected Tamil Tiger suicide attacker on a motorcycle detonated a bomb near the air force headquarters in the heart of Colombo during Friday's afternoon rush hour, killing two airmen, police spokesman Ranjith Gunasekara said.
The attacker, who was targeting airmen as they left work, wounded 30 other people, including nine airmen, he said.
The blast pierced the festive mood that had swept across the capital after President Mahinda Rajapaksa announced the fall of Kilinochchi in a nationally televised speech.
"Our brave and heroic troops have fully captured Kilinochchi, which was considered the main bastion of the LTTE," he said, referring to the rebels by their formal name, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. "For the last time, I call upon the LTTE to lay down their arms and surrender."
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More News On The Sri Lanka War
Sri Lanka says troops seize rebel headquarters -- Yahoo News/Reuters
S Lankan troops capture rebel capital, blast kills two -- Yahoo News/Reuters
Sri Lanka Army 'Seizes Key Area' -- BBC News
Troops Said to Enter Sri Lankan Rebel Capital -- Associated Press
Key loss will test Tamil Tigers -- BBC
Sri Lankan Army Captures Key Tamil Tiger Stronghold -- Voice Of America
Sri Lanka claims capture of Tamil Tiger capital -- The Guardian
Sri Lanka troops capture Tamil Tigers headquarters -- ABC News (Australia)
FACTBOX: Five key Tamil Tiger strongholds under fire -- Reuters
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